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The Department of Business, Industry and Skills has responded to concerns raised by authors and agents about collective licensing provisions in the Digital Economy Bill.
The trade had flagged up clause 43 of the bill, which gives the Secretary of State powers "for authorising a licensing body to grant copyright licences in respect of works in which copyright is not owned by the body or a person on whose behalf the body acts", as a cause for concern.
Responding to the issue, an Intellectual Property Office spokesperson said: "This clause of the Digital Economy Bill introduces extended licensing, with the aim of simplifying the rights clearance process, which can be complex and time consuming. This is not about removing control of copyright from creators. Rights holders will have the absolute right to opt out of a scheme at any time." The spokesperson added: "We have committed to consult on the opt out mechanism and want it to be as simple as possible."
But author Gillian Spraggs, a founder member of new campaign group Action on Authors' Rights, was unimpressed by the response. "The government has not shown that there is any need for extended collective licensing," she said.
"It is not justified simply to make it easier to license rights. It is a complete break with the principle of copyright, the right to control use of your work."